Specific services

Modero has numerous specialists in various areas. In this way, Modero can put an experienced and competent member of staff in charge of your case, even when dealing with a very specific branch of the law. You can count on us for accurate information (deadlines, cost estimates) and advice regarding a great deal of specific services:

Judicial officers are legally authorised to draw up an official record of findings, at the request of a lawyer, a company or a private individual, of purely material facts (that are observable). They may not provide personal comments, advice or interpretations of the facts. The finding is limited to a pure description of the existing situation. We often take photos in support of the official record. This official record of findings has the same value as an authenticated deed and can be used as evidence, for example as part of legal proceedings before a court.

For example, these are some of the facts that we can draw up an official record of:

incomplete or faulty performance of (construction) works;

reconstruction of an accident;

drawing up an inventory of household effects;

contents of a text message, website or email;

course of action during a game or lottery draw;

etc...

Do you want to draw up an official record of findings? Contact us, and we will help you right away.

We can recover the maintenance allowance - as determined by a divorce ruling or in a deed - from your ex-partner via the court. If you provide us with a detailed overview of the amounts owed, we can apply the indexation. You can contact us for this purpose, with or without the intervention of a lawyer being required.

This procedure is invasive and, moreover, it is not free of charge. Our fees are determined by law. These costs, together with the other court fees, may be recovered from the ex-partner who’s unwilling to pay. However, if it turns out your ex-partner is indigent, you will end up paying those costs. It is therefore important to first calculate whether the proceeds of a forced execution will be greater than the costs involved. We will therefore never rush into matters. We are happy to discuss the situation with you in a personal meeting first, in order to determine the most appropriate strategy.

In case of a court-ordered public auction of real estate, you may put in on a higher bid, within 15 days after the provisional allocation, in the first session. We can take care of the service to the notary and to the persons to whom the property was provisionally assigned.

In case of a volontary public auction of real estate, one may decide before the date of the first session or on the day itself the possibility of putting in a higher bid (right of higher bid).

The time limit for putting in a higher bid runs from midnight to midnight, and includes all weekdays including Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. The expiration date is included in this time period. However, if the last day is a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, the time limit is extended to the first next working day.The higher bid must be at least one-tenth of the purchase price and must not be lower than 250 euros and need not be higher than 6,200 euros.

A tenant who refuses to pay the rent is the nightmare of every landlord. To put an end to this situation, as a landlord, you can turn to the Justice of the Peace (“Justice de Paix”). You can first try to reconcile with your tenant. This is free of charge and is not mandatory. You can apply for reconciliation via the court registry of the Justice of the Peace (“Justice de Paix”) in the legal district where the rented property is located. The court registry will send a letter inviting you and the tenant to appear before the Justice of the Peace (“Justice de Paix”), on a given date, which will act as a mediator in this case. If no agreement is reached or if either party does not appear, legal proceedings will have to be initiated anyway.

Such proceedings may be initiated by means of an application or writ of summons. You can file an application with the court registry of the Justice of the Peace (“Justice de Paix”). This application must contain a number of items to be legally valid. Filing an application is faster than filing a writ of summons.

If you do not want to draw up application yourself, you can also call on us to summon the non-paying tenant. We will ensure the claim is properly drafted, possibly working together with a lawyer. The Justice of the Peace (“Justice de Paix”) may issue a ruling, in case of legal proceedings. We will then serve this ruling upon the tenant.

If the ruling states that the tenant is evicted from the property, the eviction can only happen one month after the ruling was served. There are three exceptions to this rule: if you agree on another eviction term with the tenant and this is recorded in the verdict, if the judge, because of exceptionally serious circumstances, extends or shortens the term or if you can prove that the tenant has already vacated the property.

If you fear that your tenant will leave the rented property without paying, we can impose an attachment on the tenant’s household effects.

In case of eviction, we will inform the tenant and any residents not subject to the ruling of the date by which they have to leave the property, at least 5 days in advance. We will use all contact details (ordinary and registered letter to all known addresses of the tenant, telephone number, email address...) to maximise the chances of success.

In a first stage, we can also monitor the incoming payment of rental fees and send an amicable reminder to the tenant.

As of the first quarter of 2014, as a landlord, you can join the Rental Fee Warranty Fund. This fund aims to protect landlords who rent out properties to private individuals against loss of income when tenants do not pay the rent. This measure entered into force on 1 January 2014. Landlords can join the Fund, if they pay 75 euros per contract. When tenants are unable to stick to the payment plan imposed by the court in case of non-payment, the Fund will cover up to 2,700 euros or three months’ rent. This money is then later recovered, unless the person suffers from a long-term illness, is unemployed or has to survive on an income that is below the subsistence level.

If, as a landlord, you fear that your tenant will leave the rented property without paying, you can ask us to impose an attachment on the tenant’s household effects. You simply need to instruct us to serve the tenant with a payment order. No court mandate is required, unlike the ordinary conservative attachment which always requires a judgment, court authorisation or authenticated deed.

Attaching your tenant’s household effects means that they cannot sell or give away these effects. However, your tenant is still the owner of the goods and may therefore move them. As the landlord, you, in turn, have the right to ‘follow’ these contents and can claim them back from the person who has the goods in their possession, up to 15 days after they have been moved.

If you have an enforceable title, the attachment can be converted into an enforceable attachment. Simply serving the enforceable title upon the tenant converts the conservatory attachment into an enforceable attachment.

Attachment of a renter’s household effects is only possible in case of overdue rent.

When you are unable to cash a bill of exchange, an order for payment or cheque, we can draw up a certificate of protest. Within 3 business days we will also send a certificate of protest to the National Database of Debts and Attachments (CBB). Certificates of protest are stored with the CBB until the negotiable paper has been paid in full or until the debt is cancelled for another reason. In case of full payment or cancellation, we will recant the certificate of protest within 3 working days.

These certificates of protest can be consulted electronically by everyone. As this publication (which means your creditor is blacklisted) can greatly affect the credit rating of the party concerned, this protest can be a good way of exerting pressure to obtain timely payment.

Do you have goods that you wish to sell via public auction on a voluntary basis? We can help you with this, thanks to our privileged partners who work for various auctions. Feel free to contact us for more information.

Aside from voluntary public auctions, court-ordered public auctions also exist. If your customer refuses to pay, even after repeated reminders, notices of default and attachments, we can load up the attached goods to publicly auction them off. This public auction takes place in an auction room. Each district has its own auction room. The goods are sold to the highest bidder who has to pay in cash. A judicial officer or a notary always has to be present at these public auctions, both court-ordered and voluntary auctions, as they have to draw up an official record.

A court may decide to appoint a judicial officer as a sequestrator of a good. That means that we are responsible for maintaining and storing the goods, with due care. The goods in question may include:

movable goods that have been seized;

immovable or movable goods whose ownership is disputed by two or more persons;

goods handed over by a debtor to pay off his debts.

Judicial officers are personally appointed as sequestrator of a good.

We have many experienced employees and specialists available, in a wide range of matters, including sequestrator proceedings. Consequently, we are often asked to provide this specific service. It is clear that our expertise in this matter does not remain unnoticed.

Sequestrators can be appointed by the court or by means of an agreement. In that case, goods are entrusted to a third-party pursuant to an agreement between the different parties. Naturally, these parties can also select a judicial officer to act as a sequestrator.

As a port is located in the legal district of Antwerp, the attachment court can allow us to impose a conservatory attachment on sea-going ships that are located in the port of Antwerp and in the Belgian Exclusive Economic Zone in the North Sea. The attachment court can also authorise us to attach a sea-going ship that is located within the territory of the port of Antwerp that is part of the legal district of Dendermonde, such as the Deurganck dock “Deurganckdok”). Modero makes full use of this additional territorial jurisdiction that is awarded to judicial officers of the district Antwerp.

Modero has built up expertise in this particular matter and is regularly asked to impose attachments on ships. We are familiar with the various procedures and the corresponding applicable legislation. Is the vessel in question a sea-going ship or a barge? Is it a Belgian or a foreign sea-going ship? Depending on the answer to these questions, different rules and procedures apply.

Please contact us, if you have any questions or want to discuss a case.

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